Excavation, mining, or other earth removal activities often employ machines, such as load-haul-dump machines (LHDs), wheel loaders, carry dozers, etc. to remove (i.e. scoop up) material from a pile at a first location (e.g., within a mine tunnel), to haul the material to a second location (e.g., to a crusher), and to dump the material at the second location. Productivity of the material removal process depends on the efficiency of a machine during each excavation cycle. For example, the efficiency increases when the machine can sufficiently load a machine tool (e.g., a bucket) with material at the pile within a short amount of time, haul the material via a direct path to the second location, and dump the material at the second location as quickly as possible.
As the machine travels from the first location to the second location, some of the material in the tool may spill from the tool and fall on the machine or along the path travelled by the machine. In some applications, for example, underground mining operations, spillage can create hazardous conditions by creating obstructions in the path of the machine. Because the amount of space available in underground operations is relatively small, cleanup of the spilled material is difficult and may also cause reduction in productivity of the machines.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,160,783 of Shull that issued on Apr. 17, 2012 (“the '783 patent”) discloses a digging control system for loading a work implement of a machine with material from a pile. In particular, the '783 patent discloses a controller configured to initiate tilting of the work implement when the controller determines that the loading of the work implement exceeds a threshold loading. The '783 patent also discloses that the controller monitors a tilt angle of the work implement and ceases tilting of the work implement when the tilt angle of the work implement equals a threshold tilt angle. By controlling tilting of the work implement in this manner, the controller of the '783 patent aims to reduce the average loading of the work implement during lifting and tilting of the work implement, reducing the energy expended by the machine. Further, the controller of the '783 patent aims to prevent needless pushing of the material forward into the pile.
Although the digging control system disclosed in the '783 patent discloses controlling tilting of the work implement to reduce the energy consumption of the machine, the disclosed system may not prevent spillage of material from the work implement. In particular, although the control system of the '783 patent may help ensure that the material is loaded into the work implement instead of being pushed forward into the pile by the work implement, material may still fall out of the work implement as the machine moves from the loading location to a dumping location.
The excavation system of the present disclosure solves one or more of the problems set forth above and/or other problems of the prior art.